It happened in just a few seconds; a massive ball of slimy mud, branches and rocks, hurtling down the canyon; leaving one Silverado Canyon resident without even enough time to be scared.
“I’ve seen the monster,” said Realtor Mary Schreiber, describing a debris flow that struck near her home after rains followed wildfire in early November. “It was probably eight to 10 feet high. It looked like a moving sea urchin, coming down our side of the canyon like a moving freight train, depositing ash, mud, debris, rock and trees. It sounded like thunder.”
Wildfire experts and geologists who inspected burned slopes yesterday, after a weekend of torrential rain, said that similar “monsters” of wet debris are still ready to wreak havoc upon homes in Orange County’s northeastern canyons. And unfortunately, this danger will likely remain for weeks or months, along with the possibility of more evacuation orders. That’s what’s being reported in today’s Register.
And unfortunately as long as the threat of heavy rain remains this season, this threat of slides remains. Due to all the scrub being burned, there isn’t much foliage to stop the mud flow. And due to all the debris still up there, the debris will also come down.
Hopefully, we won’t have to talk about future landslides. And hopefully, all the folks in the Canyons will be able to return soon… And not have to evacuate again. We’ll keep you updated if future storms approach.